Notes on the margins

Spring Break is here and I'm sure we're all ecstatic. Unfortunately, it doesn't mean you get time off from reading though---how can you  with all those readings you were assigned? While doing those reading assignments, I'm sure majority of us take notes on the side; for some of us it's probably become a habit. This habit of margin writing is called marginalia. Even library books aren't spared from marginalia; I've taken out many library books with underlined sentences and scribbles on the sides. Famous writers like Charles Darwin, Mark Twain, Walt Whitman, Jane Austen and Nelson Mandala were margin writers. The books that  they wrote side notes on are under lock and key in some  libraries, where students can read them but can't take them out.Margin writing offers great insight  as to what the reader thought as he or she read the book. It shows how differently the same passage, the same  book can resonate with various people. Marginalia, however, is slowly disappearing because of technology. With gadgets like kindles and e-books people are no longer buying books and jotting down notes in them. If you would like to learn more on the deterioration of margin writing, read this article:http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/21/books/21margin.html

I Guess You're Just What I Needed

Hello all, hope the coffee is strong, the atmosphere comfortable, and the books enchanting.  When you are not busy counting and re-counting down the days to Spring Break (no judgment) there's a website that may be worth your time, even if it's just to know what the rest of the world is reading, (i.e. Seamus's exact situation.)  It's called Publishers' Weekly and from a brief perusal, the best comparison I can make is to call it the Wall Street Journal of the book world.  Though a good deal of the site really is devoted to the business side (especially telling was their bold tab at top of home page  BORDERS BANKRUPTCY WATCH: ALL OUR COVERAGE) there are some useful layman's tools--reviews, blurbs, and the comprehensive On-Sale Calendars which gave a preview of upcoming titles.  Apart from the typical releases from the omnipresent Jodi Picoult, Nora Roberts, and the ilk (again, no judgment) it turns out that everyone and their mother wants to release a memoir or cookbook.  I wish I was kidding but literally, April's selection is flooded with celebrities from Shania Twain to Billy Joel to Teresa from The Real Housewives of New Jersey.  Perhaps literature really is in it's dying throes, or maybe I'm just jaded, but I only found one promising book on the whole list:  Arthur Philips' The Tragedy of Arthur, a fictionalized memoir.  The interview with Philips, though brief, was enough to get me excited for the book.  Such examples lead me to believe that Publishers Weekly does meet a need for a book-starved culture...even if it does sometimes pander to a lowbrow set.Until next time!P.S. ***To be fair, Teresa Giudice can flip tables and help others make "fabulicious" Italian cuisine.  I for one, cannot claim such level of achievement.

Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte is a favorite classic for many people. Those who have not read the book really should do so. Jane Eyre is about a rather plain looking governess who falls in love with her employer, Mr. Rochester, and finds out things are not what they seem to be. The novel starts with a child-Jane living with relatives, then continues on about her life in boarding school, and then about her years as a governess.On March 11, Jane Eyre will play in theaters; I'm sure those who have read the book already knew this and are excited about the movie. There's still time before the movie comes out for those who have not read the book to do so (the movie and book are never quite the same, you know.) and for those who have to reread and enjoy the tale once again.

The Revolution Was Not Televised

Hello all, hope you are keeping calm, and carrying on, and suchYesterday, an adventurous group of us headed uptown to the Community Church of New York for a special reading/fundraiser by Junot Diaz.  Since, I went with a group I was unaware of the details until we arrived.  I discovered that the event was part of an ongoing effort to save Revolution Books from closing.  It took me a while to recover from the shock that a store with decidedly leftist views was holding a fundraiser in a church.  But it certainly provided more space than a bookstore would have and Diaz really did inspire us from the pulpit like a priest would his congregation.Diaz is a great writer, but I've discovered the real fun in going to see him read is in the long Q+A's where he mixes hilarious anecdotes with highbrow descriptions of his process.  One minute he can be cracking jokes about a rich, but stingy friend who wanted to be comped a ticket...to a fundraiser, and the next he can drop pure wisdom: "isn't it the goal of all writing to make the language new again?  We want the reader to suddenly realize the strangeness of something they experience everyday."    The actual reading was brief--an older short story and then a new piece that he described as "absolutely terrible."  (Even though it was great writing by most standards, it was fascinating when Diaz articulated how he needed to fix it.) It was a true move of solidarity with the writers in the crowd who, as he aptly put it, "suffer through the pain of early drafts."Diaz also stressed the importance of Revolution Books as an independent bookstore, rather than as a political entity, and I agree.  I feel it would be a great loss if it were to close.  No matter your political views, the truth is independent bookstores are a precious resource.  While the call for money was a little heavy-handed throughout the night, it was easy to look past it and recognize the reading for what it was: an illuminating "Evening with Junot Diaz"Now peeps, one final thing.  Your assignment, should you choose to accept, is to write a love poem/story! Or better yet, an anti-love poem/story!

A Jagged, Gorgeous, Winter Day

...Nights filled with longer hours, HEY Happy Snow Day Y'all!Hope you are all having a great first week back.  While break was very relaxing, I'm definitely excited to be back in the bustle of the city.  Plus, now that I'm forced to walk everywhere, I can burn off all those holiday calories.  Question for the universe: can someone build a treadmill with a built in Kindle?  Or better yet, bookholder with automatic page-turner? Get back to me whenever.  My reading list over break was small, but considering their scope, I think, West Tenthers, you will forgive my lack of ambition.  I finished Freedom by Jonathan Franzen and White Teeth by Zadie Smith.  Though they were written a decade apart, with very different settings, I was struck by how similar these books were at the core.  They both observe the effects of modern society across generations by focusing closely on very dysfunctional (read: realistic) families.  What is the dark side of our cherished Western freedoms?  Can love survive despite sex/infidelity, difference of culture, and good ol' fate?  These are the types of heavy questions I contended with, but, after all, the heavy novels are the most satisfying kind, in a way.  And the two authors wrap their piercing observation in such humorous situations that you don't even recognize their full implications until you're forced (reluctantly in my case) to put them down.      One unfortunate consequence of this otherwise glorious snow day is that tonight's reading at the Writer's House with Michael Cunningham was canceled.  Although I had prior commitments, I would have highly recommended it.  In lieu of the real deal, we can use our free time today to get started on his celebrated works The Hours, A Home at the End of the World, or his newest By Nightfall.  And, if you're already worn out by your school reading, the movie versions aren't too shabby either.  The Reading Series this spring doesn't have as many, for lack of better term, star authors as in the fall, but I'm grateful that more time and  opportunity will be given to lesser-knowns.  Some readings at NYU that I will definitely be looking forward to this semester are ones by Matthew Rohrer, Nick Flynn, and Colson Whitehead.Stay warm chicos! Hot Cocoa and a good book are the doctor's orders... 

Defining Your World

Hello all!Welcome back to the real world (insert hard stare). The gloves come off!But do keep all gloves and mittens on because it was 6 degrees today and no one wants any fingers to fall off. You need them to write! And what good writing weather it is. Because you can’t go outside.During the last few days of freedom before the spring term began, I spent my time immersed in book called ROOM by Emma Donoghue, daughter of NYU’s esteemed Henry James Professor of English and American Letters, Professor Denis Donoghue.The book has been nominated for many prizes and has been on many best-seller lists since September 2010, when it was published. It is an utterly absorbing story told from the point of view of 5-year-old Jack. Jack is kind of amazing. And so is his story: he is the child of a woman who was kidnapped seven years before the novel begins. The novel takes place in the 11-by-11-foot room he and his mother have been trapped and living in.ROOM is by turns a thrilling escape story, a hilarious and frightening explorer’s tale, part literary horror film (horror…novel?), and the heartbreaking and heart-strengthening chronicles of a boy and his mother. The mother-son relationship is the life-blood of the book and if you were a child or have a parent (YES I MEAN EVERYONE YES THANK YOU) you should read ROOM. You won't put it down until you've finished it. Guaranteed.But besides giving a quasi-review of the book (OK a full-blown, passionate argument on its behalf)—I meant to post a writing exercise. In ROOM, Jack speaks of the objects surrounding him as if they were Close Friends. A rug is not just a thing on the floor. For Jack, it is Rug, a good friend and confidant who is there to be played with. So too with Table, and with Plant. He does this because his world is 11-by-11 feet wide. Your world is not this size, but try to scale everything down. This is an exercise in description.So: Try writing about an object like Jack might. You don’t have to write what it is, but try to write from a perspective that incorporates more than an object’s physical appearance—write in a way that informs what that object DOES to your world, how you interact with it. What does Lamp (that weird little lamp in your bedroom that your mom got you from an antique store when you were really young and didn’t care about presents that weren’t stuffed animals, that one with the peeling lace around the shade) mean to you? What light might this throw on the way you look at your surroundings? 

Favorite Titles

Hello everyone! Now that we've had the first official flurry-sighting of the season, it's time to break out those down coats, drink warm things like soup (soup! Does anyone else miss soup like I miss soup in warm weather?) and hug your friends. Just go hug them.But onwards to the point of this post: I wanted to open up the stage for anyone to share their favorite TITLES of books. This way, if anything strikes your eye you can check it out and possibly request it or give it as a gift this holiday season. Writing a novel or collection of poetry--PAH! (That was the sound of air quickly exiting my mouth in a smug sort of way). Easy.We all know that the hard part of writing really comes down to creating The Title. The Epic Thing that Will Catch Your Audience's Eye and Not Let Them Leave The Book's Presence.Here are a few of my all-time favorites....Of Poetry:Pity the Bathtub Its Forced Embrace of the Human Form - Matthea Harvey. Also the title of one of her poems.Lunch Poems - Frank O'Hara. Just read the inscription on the back of book: "Often this poet, strolling through the noisy splintered glare of a Manhattan noon, has paused at a sample Olivetti to type up thirty or forty lines of ruminations, or pondering more deeply has withdrawn to a dark ware- or firehouse to limn his computed misunderstandings of the eternal questions of life, co-existence and depth, while never forgetting to eat Lunch his favorite meal..." GLORIOUS.Veinte poemas de amor y una canción desesperada - Pablo Neruda. Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair.Of, erm, Everything Else:A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius - Dave Eggers.Another Bullshit Night in Suck City - Nick Flynn. (Also a poet!)The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down - Anne Fadiman....What about you?

Uptown Girl

Hello West Tenthers, I hope you all had a fantastic break and have returned, well-rested and ready to take on finals...and the cold...and holiday-related stress...well, its looking pretty bleak but keep in mind that winter break is on its way.Having missed Zadie Smith's NYU reading, a friend and I trekked to an uptown Barnes & Noble to see her read from her new collection, Changing My Mind: Occasional Essays.  By this point, it's probably obvious that I'm obsessed with venue, and I was acutely aware of the difference between this store at 86th and Lexington with downtown readings.  A very quiet, much older crowd populated the room which (shocker) had seats to spare.  But lest one think I've forgotten to keep it real, I assure y'all that I still very much need my village zest.  While it was nice to actually get a seat, the proceedings lent themselves to a stuffy air.  As Smith herself commented at hearing applause after her first reading, "you're all so quiet...it terrifies me."The reading itself was nothing spectacular, but was quite pleasant, and even inspirational for burgeoning writers in the room.  Zadie Smith was a force behind the podium; her charm came through in the wit and humor she displayed in her writing and in the Q&A session. (When one Australian fan asked how she liked living in the city, she responded that her favorite part was eavesdropping on the conversations of rarely-fazed New Yorkers).  I would go see her speak again, but definitely at a fiction reading.  Smith wanted to avoid "boring" us with literary critique and instead read part of a lecture she gave at Columbia and the prescient, considering the time of year, "Scenes from the Smith Family Christmas."  SFTSFC was a great essay but was first published all the way back in 2003.  I feel it would be more fascinating to hear Smith at a current stage in her writing.  Besides, if Smith's literary critiques are on par with the rest of her work, I can safely assume it would not have bored us at all.One a side note, we were informed before the reading that Smith's appearance was being filmed for Barnes and Noble's website.  (It's not up yet, but this is the site where it will eventually be posted).  Please watch it, judge for yourselves!  Until next time cool kids...

Poetry Anthologies: Where to Start

Hello everyone! Happy Almost Thanksgiving! As the long weekend rolls around, I'd like to offer some suggestions on how to structure your time. While the turkey is the in oven and you are slowly becoming more impatient as you become more ravenous (and you keep meekly calling "I'm HUNgry!" into the kitchen and your relatives yell back "You could come in and chop some string beans!" and you fold yourself back onto the couch to watch the Godfather with the rest of the non-helping folk), instead of reaching for the remote and saying the lines as Marlon Brando speaks them, cozy up with an anthology.I find there are two types of people in this world: Those Who Like Anthologies and Those Who Do Not Care For Them.Perhaps that's a wild generalization. But there is a mixed camp. And that might be because when you think of anthologies, you think of huge tomes that are impossible to carry around even though you must haul them over to Brit Lit I and II.I will admit that I secretly like getting those tomes for big survey classes, just because it gives me the excuse to buy such a ridiculous thing (ridiculously FANTASTIC!) and put it on a shelf to remind myself I am a Scholar. A Scholar! But it's still pretty impractical to enjoy reading something that huge. (With the exception of HP. HP. You know, right? OK. I had to reference it once. July can't come fast enough.)And yet: that's not the only kind of anthology out there!Here are a few to get you started:Poetry 180: A Turning Back to Poetry and 180 More: Extraordinary Poems for Every Day . Billy Collins, former Poet Laureate and all around poetry-everyman, put out these to great basic anthologies. If you are just getting started reading poetry, this is the place for you. I read these in high school and it got me excited about poetry more than I had been. Looking back in them now, it's amazing the range of poets he covers. Although these poems probably won't change your view of the world, they are all fun and some quite beautiful. AND the best thing about these books is that if you find a poet you enjoy, go off and search for the rest of his or her work--and then get blown away by the full force of their writing.Staying Alive: Real Poems for Unreal Times. Questionable title aside, this anthology contains a lot of lesser-known and foreign poets. It's divided into sections such as Life, Nature, Death, etc but DO NOT LET THAT DETER YOU! There are some awesome, odd poems in here.The Best American Poetry Series. A slim volume that comes out every year, this anthology is always a breath of fresh air. And what's so special about it is that along with the editor, David Lehman, each collection features a guest editor who is well-respected (kick ass) poet. I, for one, love seeing what poems my favorite poet chooses to be in the collection. There is also a Best American Short Story Series, as well as others.Now let me pause this unfinished list. I'll keep adding to it, and don't hesitate to recommend your own suggestions for cool anthologies worth checking out!Go forth and relax!

A Brief Yet Wondrous Reading

96,ooo...Junot Díaz fans? holla...while the reading earlier tonight didn't pack that many fans into Cantor, the line was certainly impressive enough.  By 7:00, the line wrapped around and down University Place, past where I stood outside of Weinstein, and down to at least the Silver Center.  Know that I almost gave up and headed home West Tenthers,  but in a move worthy of those comic book heroes that inspire his work, Diaz agreed to have a second reading in an adjacent theater.  Though I nearly had a heart attack when I was stopped by public safety in the doorway of Cantor while they checked capacity, the forces of good prevailed, and I was able to swoop in for one of the last seats.  This happenstance was probably best for all parties involved...since hell really hath no fury like a New Yorker waiting in line for over an hour.  While I was one of the lucky ones, the plight of the fans left outside highlights a recurring space problem with such events (there was similar insanity when Jonathan Safran Foer read earlier this semester).  I sincerely hope the Reading Series can provide bigger spaces in future readings for well-known authors.  NYU boasts one of the biggest theaters in downtown Manhattan.  As Darrell, pronounced Da-rrell would say, "can we have it?"But, know what?  I'm willing to let it go because on this "comic-book thursday" Junot Díaz delivered. His charisma and wit won over an impatient crowd but the actual reading, from his short story "Nilda," only lasted about ten minutes.  And, while I believe everyone would have liked to have heard more, I'm cautioned by that oh-so-familiar maxim involving beggars and choosing.  I will say that the reading itself was completely overshadowed by the almost 30 min. Q&A session that followed.  Díaz used questions such as "what was your inspiration for Oscar Wao?" and "how do you handle criticism that suggests your book is sexist?" to delve into his motivations for writing characters such as Oscar, Yunior and Lola* that "map" the identities of the Dominican Diaspora, notions of masculinity, and lasting cultural trauma and legacy of dictatorships.  If it sounds deep, well that's because...it was.Perhaps Díaz's best advice came when answering a question from a writer in the room about the merits of gaining "outside approval" from others.  He responded along the lines of, "If you only want approval [for your work], you don't give people what will engage them, you give people what you'll think they like--that's entertainment, not art."

*Read The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, no but seriously, do it.

David Sedaris Seeking Ethnic Jokes and Other Things I Learned on Monday

Monday night the Barnes and Noble in Union Square played host to David Sedaris, who read from his new book, Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk, short fictions about animals. Sedaris also read from his diary, told some jokes, listened to some jokes, and took questions from an ecstatic audience.I am positively certain that Mr. Sedaris would provide a much more engaging and comic resumé of the night's events, so I'm going to give it to you in the most boring manner possible, a list.1. David Sedaris has been working on Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk for seven years. Seven years ago a friend gave him an audio recording of some South African folk tales. Mr. Sedaris was certain he could write better ones.2. David Sedaris enjoys gruesome animal violence. In one of his newest stories a unicorn's horn is gnawed off by a bunny.3. David Sedaris is trying out the sweater vest as a look. It's not going so well. Mr. Sedaris was recently stopped at airport security and forced to remove his sweater vest.4. David Sedaris has a friend in Amsterdam named Pauline. A bird once pooped in her mouth while she was riding on the back of motorbike. She later broke up with the man driving.5. David Sedaris nearly purchased a home in Sussex called Faggot-Stacks, which sat between two estates incorporating the words "cocks" and "titties." Mr. Sedaris chose not to purchase the property because "it was on a busy street."6. David Sedaris really likes to hear Elaine Stritch read. Ms. Stritch reads on the audio recording of Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk which Mr. Sedaris attempted to play by placing his earbuds on the microphone. It only kind of worked.6. Here's a joke David Sedaris heard: What's the worst thing you can hear when your giving Willie Nelson a blowjob? I'm not Willie Nelson.8. David Sedaris told lots of other jokes not about blowjobs, but I only remember that one.9. David Sedaris likes when people tell him jokes while he signs their books. This probably helps him stay cheery, since he promises to sign the book of everyone who shows up, usually keeping the Barnes and Noble open until 2am. He's currently seeking ethnic jokes from all cultures, Asian and Mexican in particular, since Mr. Sedaris feels you can only tell ethnic jokes if you have one for every ethnicity.10. David Sedaris recommends the book Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned by Wells Tower because he finds it extremely good. One of his favorite parts is where the author describes a sea creature as "the turd of someone who had been eating rubies."BONUS: For more David Sedaris, check out his interview on The Daily Show from Thursday November 4th, also featuring Ira Glass in a special cameo appearance.

Thursday Night's (Also) Alright for Fighting (And Events)

Hello there Blog-osphere! My name is Seamus and I'm delighted to contribute to this little venture.  Please check back often and do spread the word.  Love it or hate it, its going to be an obsession.  (Yes that was a Lady Soverign reference) so before I embarrass myself further...Unfortunately, Anne Carson's appearance at the writer's house tonight was canceled.  Although Carson will most likely be back (she does teach a class here after all) it is truly unfortunate, especially since her performance piece last year worked so well.  Carson and her collaborators turned the Writer's House into a "haunted room."  The surreal piece was a highlight of the reading series that re-established the possibilities of the space.  Did I understand all of it? Definitely not.  Could I appreciate the creativity? Hell yes.But instead, tonight you will find me at The Sidewalk Cafe in Alphabet City rocking out (listening appreciatively?) to some slam poetry starting at  8:00.Speaking of slam, friday nights at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe (also Alphabet City) are mandatory for anybody interested in the art.  Arrive early, fight for a seat, and mentally prepare yourself for the onslaught of good poetry about to come your way.  Another worthy poetry/music venue on the east side is the Bowery Poetry Club which features a pretty generous variety of performances (tonight is a burleque show, tomorrow is a Brooklyn punk band.)Some notable + free events in fiction tonight: NYU faculty member Chuck Wachtel reads from his novel 3/03 at the NYU Bookstore and Adam Levin reads from his debut The Instructions at BookCourt in Brooklyn.  Levin's novel has been receiving numerous comparisons to David Foster Wallace for similarities in both style and literal size.  I, for one, will be very interested to see if those comparisons hold (as soon as I can devote time to fully consuming a thousand pages.  Just some light reading, I know)Until next time, have a wonderful week West Tenthers.  I know I will--Junot Diaz comes to Cantor on the 11th!

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close Film Now Casting for Oskar Schell Role

Jonathan Safran Foer addicts can get their daily Foer-fill from the knowledge that the Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close movie is moving forward in pre-production and currently casting the part of Oskar Schell.Castings posters have been spotted in Foer's home turf of Park Slope Brooklyn looking for 9-13 year old Caucasian boys, so be quick to alert your younger brothers, cousins, and nephews of the news, or maybe you can even try to pass yourself off as kid for a shot at the part.The film is going to be directed by Stephen Daldry who has also directed novel-to-movies like The Reader and The Hours, and is rumoured to be starring Sandra Bullock and Tom Hanks. Naturally there's the question as to whether Elijah Wood or Liev Schreiber will make appearances, as both did incredible jobs in Foer's last film adaptation Everything is Illuminated.Since Foer's first two novels are making their way into film, I can only wonder if Eating Animals will be as well, using a more documentary style? Freshmen in Foer's seminar, please do some investigative journalism and get back to us?

Wish List for the Holiday Season

Now that it's November, stop buying things. Suppress the urge. Instead, make lists of what you want. Give those lists to people (people with money, i.e. relatives) and kiss them. It's especially good to take note of what books you want because I can guarantee that some grandparent will jump at the chance to give that book to you.This year, instead of the usual fiction and poetry request, may I suggest exploring the world of letters. Great writers (and artists!) write great letters. Browse a few collections at the nearest bookstore and note them down for those wish-lists.A few of my favorite collections include: selected letters of Emily Dickinson, of Virginia Woolf, of John Keats, of Vincent van Gogh. Dickinson's letters will literally blow your mind. But you'll have the whole of winter vacation to gather yourself up again. I'm serious: if you find it hard to get into Dickinson's poetry, reading her letters is like reading her poetry but there's even more room to move around in. And she can be hilarious. (She's so weird. And I by weird I mean how-did-you-exist-you're-so-fantastic.) Plus, she sent most of her poems in letters to her friends and family. So they're in there too.ALSO: with these letters in your possession, you can have a grand old time writing erasures. Erasures are poems formed by taking a text and using its words to create a new poem. For example, if I wrote "The sun was behind the clouds but I could still see your face", you could take this and write "The sun was still your face" or  simply "behind your face" or even "the face". Use as many of the words or as few as you want. Using letters as your main source helps your creation flow because you can use "I" a lot more. And "I" always makes a poem seem more human.(Don't be scared, don't let your honor get in the way. This is not stealing. The English language is FREE! And anyway, wasn't it T.S. Eliot who said "Mediocre writers borrow. Great writers steal." So there's that.)